1/48 A-7E Corsair II finished I think

[reserve]

While waiting for some stuff for the Panzer III I decided to start this



and have managed to get this far with it





I've not done aircraft models for years, it's been so long I'm having trouble planning the build but I should be able to flounder thru it.

As kits go it's pretty well done and the PE snazzes things up considerably altho I hate working with it. So far a 5/10 on the enjoyment scale, this will no doubt improve once I'm past the PE stage which is largely limited to the cockpit and wheel wells. With some luck I should be able to make a halfway decent job of this

Regards,
Mark

[JCON]

Nice!!! I'll follow along!!!

[RLFoster]

I haven't done an aircraft in years either. Looking forward to seeing your progress.

[reserve]

Cheers gents

In the old days Hasegawa models were touted as the last word in engineering and fit, and hey they probably were. I seem to recall that anyway. This one's pretty good by said standards but compared with Tammy or some of the latest Dragon armor kits it's rather vile.

This is my observation, I'm not bellyaching but there seem to be many gaps to be filled and some parts have to be filed rather extensivley for a good outcome. Perhaps this is just the way aircraft kits are and I've forgotten but I think I'm remembering why I stopped doing them in the first place.

Not really picture worthy yet but the major assemblies are almost ready to come together and then it's putty time. At that point I'll put up some shots so 'yall can see the mess I'm making of this

Regards,
Mark

[JED]

I had a Mosquito in 1/32 and ended up putting it in the bin, there was so much variation in the moulding standards i just got annoyed!! I am very tempted though to try one of the new or re-issued updated planes by Airfix. I think the Mosquito was by Revell but not 100% sure.

[Steve Ski]

Ah, the A-7, great bird. We always thought it looked like a quale at takeoff and landing,..................where's my shotgun, HA! When it came out it had the most advanced weapons delivery system of the day, incredible versatility. I loaded these pigs for the New Mexico Air Guard, back in 89-90. Easy to work on and the pilots seemed to like em.

I'm right in there with ya, reserve. Doin them wingy thingys takes a total mind change and you are attacking it just fine, imho. Bookmarked!

[reserve]

Jed if it was a Revell I can understand, the last one of those I saw in a box was appalling. Gave it away as I did not want to waste my time on it

Ski the A-7 has always been my favorite, love the shape and the lines looks like it means business

Got all the big stuff together



and now it's putty time. The major gaps 







which I suppose I really can't cry too much about as they are not really all that bad. Hasegawa got clever in how they designed the wing assembly, eliminating the wing root joint gap that I never got good at filling and shaping.

Now the messy part begins

Regards,
Mark

[JCON]

Coming together nicely Mark!!!

[reserve]

Thank you sir

Continental drift is faster than I am with this build. Finally got the cockpit done, gaps filled and sanded, missiles and bombs stuck together. 









I picked up a Squadron scribing tool to restore panel lines that got sanded off but I'm not very good with it...need to see if I can get some scribing tape somewhere. The model is molded in a hard plastic so the tool skitters around on the surface and is difficult to cut straight with, and I'm sure my clumsy approach to the task does not help. 

I decided to have it carrying a load of smart bombs, GBU 10's and 12's. I have no idea if this aircraft was ever fitted out thus but I really don't much care look out rivet counters. I'm also trying, without much success, to find some Gulf War era low visibility decals as I always thought the overall dark grey paintjob looks really good on aircraft. I did find some for an A-6 from Sprue Brothers that turned out to be 1/32 scale when they showed up much to my disgust. If anyone has a use for such things PM me and they're yours

Regards,
Mark

[reserve]

Primer



Soon it'll be wearing an overall coat of Tammy Dark Sea Grey, I managed to find appropriate Gulf War era decals for such a paintjob. I also found some Flory's wash as I've noted Robbo using it to achieve an excellent effect. Both items are now on their way here so progress is contingent on the efficacy of the US PO. In the past they've been pretty good actually

Regards,
Mark

[RLFoster]

I don't about you, Mark, but I'm always pleased when the primer hits the plastic! Can't wait to see what comes next.

[JCON]

Very nice!!!

[reserve]

Thanks gents

RL yes I usually am too, but more so in this case as I was not sure the project would get to this point

Having given sufficent time for the primer to thoroughly cure I basecoated it with the aforementioned Tammy dark sea grey



Now I'll give it a couple more days to cure, then glosscoat it. I'm inclined to be a bit more picky about such things given the subject as it's not like a tank where if I bungle something I can cover it with mud or a tarp

Regards,
Mark

[JCON]

Looks good so far!!!

[reserve]

Thanks brother

I've brought this one a little further





I'm waffling between a light fade on the upper surfaces or just going with it as is. I'm also scratchig away at this





which has been quite ugly so far. It'll get its own thread unless it goes in the garbage bucket

Regards,
Mark

[Steve Ski]

Don't ditch that F-18, it's a practice bird. A-7 looks really good.

[reserve]

Thanks Ski 

I most likely won't ditch the F-18 even tho it's got some ghastly aspects to it...just the thing to get up to speed for nicer stuff


Decals and Flory's arrived. Decals are from Carcal, supposed to be 1/48 but they looked a little big. I used 'em anyway as a rather lengthy search told me it was them or nothing. Flory's being applied





I've learned some things already

All surfaces have to be smooth and mine are not, the Tammy X-22 orange peeled on me in spots so it's difficult if not impossible to get all the wash off, I'll have to be more careful in clear coat application

Next time I'll airbrush the Flory's on

I really like the effect Flory's gives you. Despite the orange peel surface trouble I still think it looks OK, could be better but it's my first aircraft in a long time I'm happy I was able to get it to it's current state

Regards,
Mark

[Steve Ski]

Hey Mark, that wash will come off, but I'd use a Q-tip damp, rub gently. If I'm not understanding what you were saying, disregard, but that wash should come clean. This bird is too purty. Standing by

[reserve]

Thanks Ski 

I don't think I was clear about wash removal, it came off alright it was just harder in the orange peel spots. If you use this stuff be prepared to go thru alot of paper towels and Q-tips. In places the panel lines were too shallow to hold the Flory's so I came in with some AK dark wash that fixed the problem straight away.

After looking at enough pictures of Clansmen Gulf War A-7's that my eyes watered I came to the conclusion that these aircraft were flat finished and dirty so I took advantage of the excess wash and tried to streak it as best I could. Once dry I hosed it down with MM acrylic flat clearcoat 'till I killed all the shine. enough blather, pictures.






















Looking at this I see I neglected to paint the nav lights. Oh well easily fixed. Sorry about the many pictures I don't know how to photograph aircraft models very well yet. I'm rather pleased with it overall especially since this is the first aircraft model in a long, long time

Regards,
Mark

[Dukemaddog]

Looks fantastic! Don't worry about having so many photos; they work well to show of your beautiful plane. We can never have too many pics!